ELECTION OUTCOME TO BE CHALLENGED AT ECHR
A1+
[08:40 pm] 25 April, 2008
The Centre for the Popular Movement (CPM) convened a sitting
today. The Centre is going to challenge the outcome of the February
19 Presidential election at the European Court of Human Rights.
An experts’ panel including Armenian and foreign lawyers will be set
up to elaborate the lawsuit, the pre-election headquarters for Levon
Ter-Petrossian reports.
CANADIAN ARMENIANS COMMEMORATE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE VICTIMS
PanARMENIAN.Net
24.04.2008 15:31 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Various 93rd Armenian Genocide commemoration
events, which started on April 20, will culminate on Parliament Hill
on April 24. Religious leaders, representatives of other community
organizations, political representatives, and representatives of other
genocide victim nations will attend the commemoration ceremony in
Ottawa, the Armenian National Committee of Canada told PanARMENIAN.Net.
The Canadian-Armenian community and Armenians around the world are
commemorating the death of 1.5 million Armenians exterminated during
the first genocide of the 20th century by Ottoman Turkey.
This significant memorial ceremony will recall this horrendous
crime against humanity and to thank the Canadian people for their
support. Various members of the House of Parliament will accompany
the survivors to place flowers around the Eternal Flame.
The solidarity and support of Canadians to commemorate the 93rd
anniversary is not only for the victims of the Armenian Genocide,
but to all victim nations of genocide, Holocaust, war crimes and
human rights abuses across the world. We, as Canadians, should send a
clear message to the international community and to our follow human
begins that such crimes will not be tolerated, forgotten, denied, and
repeated. We owe it to the millions of martyrs who paid the ultimate
price for intolerance, xenophobia, and hatred.
List of other remaining Commemoration Events: Toronto, Calgary,
Yellowknife, Ottawa, Vancouver.
ARMENIAN PREMIER ADDRESSES MESSAGE ON ANNIVERSARY OF GENOCIDE
ARKA
April 24, 2008
YEREVAN, April 24. /ARKA/. RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan
addressed a message to the Armenian people on the occasion of the
93rd anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.
In his message the RA Premier states that April 24 is one of the days
when all the Armenians bow their heads to the memory of the victims
of the Armenian Genocide. The crime masterminded and perpetrated by
the authorities of the Ottoman Empire was the annihilation of the
Armenian people. Over 1.5mln Armenians fell victim to that heinous
crime. Hundreds of thousands of old people, women and children were
forcibly displaced, says the RA Premier’s message.
This day all the Armenians pay homage to the innocent victims’ memory
and re-examine the most important lessons of the past.
"We cannot live a prosperous and secure life if we are disunited. We
will not be able to prevent great disasters if we have no strong
statehood, and we neither can and nor must forget our history as a
nation. We must move forward, we must unite round national ideas,
build up a strong democratic state, do everything possible and
impossible for Armenia’s security, prosperity and development –
for our country’s future," says RA Premier’s message.
The Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923 was the first genocide in the 20th
century organized and systematically committed by the government of
Young Turks. The admission of the Armenian Genocide by Turkey is of
fundamental importance for the Armenian nation, as the Genocide was
aimed at putting an end to the Armenian Cause.
The day of massacre of the best representatives of the Armenian
intelligentsia, April 24, is a symbolic day of commemoration pf
the victims.
The policy of destroying Armenians in their historical homeland was
launched in the 1990s of the 19th century. During World War I, about
1,500,000 Armenians were killed, 350,000 fled to the Caucasus and
Europe. As a result, the Armenian population of Turkey was reduced
from 2,000,000 early in the 20th century to 150,000.
On April 24, 1915, eight hundred well-known representatives of the
Armenian intelligentsia – scientists, writers, teachers, doctors,
clergymen and public figures – fell victim to torturous killing
in Turkey.
The Armenian Genocide has been recognized by a number of countries
(Uruguay, Russia, France, Lithuania), and Parliaments.
ARMENIAN GENOCIDE IDENTIFIED AS TEMPLATE FOR HOLOCAUST AND OTHER ‘MODERN’ GENOCIDES
PanARMENIAN.Net
23.04.2008 16:40 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ New York Times bestselling author, Professor Peter
Balakian joined political figures, and representatives and members
of Sydney’s Armenian community in commemorating the 93rd Anniversary
of the Armenian Genocide, reported the Armenian National Committee
of Australia.
Balakian, Rebar Professor of the Humanities at Colgate University
and Raphael Lemkin Prize-winning author of The Burning Tigris:
The Armenian Genocide and America’s Response (2003), exposed the
1,000 attendees to research identifying the Armenian Genocide as the
‘template’ used by Adolf Hitler for the Jewish Holocaust, as well as
other ‘modern’ genocides.
"To understand the Jewish Holocaust, to understand the Cambodian
Genocide, to understand Darfur; we must first of all understand their
template of genocide in the modern period, the Armenian Genocide,"
said Prof. Balakian.
Balakian’s address highlighted the need for worldwide recognition
and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide.
"Professor Balakian has brought great exposure to the Armenian cause
worldwide and he is now continuing this in Australia," said Mr. Varant
Meguerditchian of the organizing Armenian Genocide Commemorative
Committee.
"The research he presented tonight shows why recognizing and condemning
acts of Genocide remains an important human rights priority."
HAYPOST TO OFFER INSURANCE SERVICES
Noyan Tapan
April 23, 2008
YEREVAN, APRIL 23, NOYAN TAPAN. HayPost and Ingo Armenia companies on
April 23 signed an agreement, by which HayPost will offer insurance
services to its Armenian customers. NT correspondent was informed
by the press service of HayPost CJSC that starting from June 1st,
insurance service packages will be available at all offices of
HayPost. The company’s staff is undergoing training to acquire
the necessary qualification with the aim of offering and providing
insurance services.
RUSSIAN-ARMENIAN URANIUM JV TO START EXPLORATIONS IN ARMENIA BY YEAR-END
Prime-Tass English-language Business Newswire
April 22, 2008 Tuesday 1:31 PM EET
MOSCOW, April 22 (Prime-Tass) – A Russian-Armenian joint venture
to explore and mine uranium in Armenia plans to start geological
explorations in the country by the end of this year, Armenia’s Ministry
of Environmental Protection and Russian state-owned uranium producer
Atomredmetzoloto said in a joint statement Tuesday.
The agreement to set up the joint venture was signed Tuesday
by Atomredmetzoloto’s CEO Vadim Zhivov and Armenian Minister of
Environmental Protection Aram Harutyunyan in the Armenian capital
of Yerevan.
The joint venture will be registered in three months, and will be
controlled on a parity basis.
Under preliminary estimates, projected uranium reserves in Armenia
exceed 10,000 tonnes.
Atomredmetzoloto is wholly owned by nuclear power holding
Atomenergoprom, which is part of state-owned nuclear monopoly Rosatom.
DAVID HAROUTIUNIAN: APRIL 17 PACE RESOLUTION PROCEEDS FROM ARMENIA’S INTERESTS
Noyan Tapan
April 22, 2008
YEREVAN, APRIL 22, NOYAN TAPAN. All stipulations of the resolution
adopted at the April 17 plenary sitting of PACE spring session
on activity of democratic institutions in Armenia, irrespective of
their formulations, proceed from Armenia’s interests and are aimed at
improving these institutions’ activity. RPA member David Haroutiunian,
the head of the Armenian delegation in PACE, the Chairman of the
RA National Assembly Standing Committee for State and Legal Issues,
expressed such an opinion at the April 22 press conference.
According to him, PACE does not oblige Armenia to fulfil the proposals
stipulated by the resolution, "it is up to the sovereign country to
make a decision," but PACE has a right, if they are not fulfilled,
to discuss the issue of depriving the Armenian delegation of the right
of vote during the opening of the June session. In D. Haroutiunian’s
opinion, the Armenian authorities should be interested in taking some
steps in the direction of resolution’s fulfilment in this short term,
which will be also discussed within the framework of the political
coalition soon.
According to D. Haroutiunian, the most important problems stipulated
by the resolution, elaboration of mechanisms aimed at guaranteeing
opposition’s proper rights and duties in the political system,
improval of electoral processes, real independence of the National
Commission of Television and Radio, Council of Public TV and Radio
Company, guaranteeing freedom of rallies, independence of judicial
power and public confidence to it, efficient public control over
Police actions to people arrested and imprisoned arbitrarily, as
well as ensuring an independent investigation on the March 1 events,
release of people imprisoned for artificial or political accusations,
need to be solved urgently.
Touching upon PACE’s proposal on guaranteeing an independent
investigation of the March 1 events, D. Haroutiunian, in particular,
expressed an opinion that creation of an ad hoc parliamentary
commission for that purpose is not expedient from point of view of
efficiency. In his words, that function can be reserved for the
RA Ombudsperson by involving "independent experts having proper
knowledge in the respective sphere, in particular, specialists in
Police actions."
"I am sure that our Police was not prepared either for such a
situation and coming across such a situation, it not always acted
as a well-prepared Police force having proper equipment would act,"
D. Haroutiunian said.
"WHAT HAPPENED ON APRIL 24" DISCUSSION IN ISTANBUL
By H. Chaqrian
AZG Armenian Daily
23/04/2008
Genocide
Head of "Komitas" institute, London, taking part in the event
Each year on April 21 the Armenian people commemorate the victims of
the Genocide in Ottoman Turkey.
Mourning events are being organized in the US, France, Russia, Italy,
Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon, the Arabic and Latin American states
and Iran. Poland, Georgia and, according to "Milliet" columnist Semihj
Idiz, Israel.
In short, each year the number of the states remembering the victims of
the Armenian Genocide is growing. More and more statesmen, political
and social figures from different countries are taking part in events
dedicated to the one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century.
Expert of the Armenian Researches Institute of Ankara Yildiz Deveci
invites the public attention to this fact in the Institute’s April 21
bulletin and notes that the week-long events in Moscow are organized
by the Union of Armenian Russians, and the events in California are
announced by Governor Schwarzenegger himself.
Yildiz Deveci also makes comments about the "What Happened on April 24"
discussion, organized on the same day in Istanbul. Before analyzing the
comments of Deveci, let us inform that the discussion is organized by
the Istanbul branch of the Human Rights Union. Head of the "Komitas"
institute Ara Sarafian (London) was invited and took part in the
event. He is to make a report about the reason why the Armenians
consider April 24 the beginning of the massacres.
Although the number of the attendants of the discussion is rather
small, Human Rights Defender Ragip Zarakolu is included among the
rapporteurs. His report is entitled "April 24 – the Beginning of
Elimination of the Intellectuals". Another Rapporteur, ex-director
of the Human Rights Union Ereb Keskin is entitled "April 24, 1915 in
Human Rights Aspect".
More information shall still be provided about the discussion in
Istanbul. In conclusion let us mark that Armenian Researches Institute
Yildiz Deveci is sure that Turkey, having organized such a discussion,
is unconsciously joining the long list of states, which commemorate
the Armenian Genocide. Deveci concludes that such events may result in
growing support in Turkey for the "Armenians’ claims about genocide" .
"I HAVE URGED PRESIDENT BUSH TO NEGOTIATE A FREE TRADE AGREEMENT WITH GEORGIA" – SEN. RICHARD LUGAR
Malkhaz Gulashvili
Daily Georgian Times
; newsid=10386
April 21 2008
Georgia
"NATO failed to provide Ukraine and Georgia with the Membership Action
Plan that would put them on a path to join the alliance. This was a
critical error that has broad implications for European security,"
Republican Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee,
Richard Lugar said in an exclusive interview with The Georgian Times.
Republican Senator Richard Lugar, who has been to Georgia a couple
of times, is considered a strong supporter of Georgia and its
government. During his recent visit to Georgia, Sen. Lugar openly said
he does not favor the presence of Russian-led peacekeeping forces in
Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Sen. Lugar has actively been pushing for
membership of both Ukraine and Georgia in NATO.
Richard Lugar: While Russia doesn’t have a veto over NATO decisions,
the Alliance must remain vigilant that Moscow does not develop a
de facto veto. Their strong positions as a critical energy supplier
cannot be permitted to affect NATO decisions.
G.T.: How will the relations between Russia and the US develop in
the next 2-3 years? What should Georgia expect for this period?
R.L.: After 200 years, the goals of U.S.-Russian relations remain
the same. We want our relationship to contribute to basic security
and prosperity for Russians and Americans. Our policies toward
one another have frequently been characterized by ambiguous and
difficult choices, but I am sure we can make progress in the areas of
collaboration essential to our common interests. I remain optimistic
that we will summon the courage and perseverance required to move
our nations toward mutual successes. I consider myself a good friend
of Georgia. I will continue to urge the U.S to maintain a strong
relationship with Tbilisi to ensure Georgia remains independent and
committed to democratic and free market principles.
G.T.: Has confidence amongst US political leaders changed after the
November 7th events when the state of Emergency was declared? What
are US expectations about Georgia’s parliamentary elections slated
for May 21? How would you assess the January 5 presidential elections?
R.L.: The U.S. must provide strong leadership to our friends in
Tbilisi. I am pleased that the OSCE determined that the January
elections were free and fair. I am hopeful that the elections in May
will signal further improvement and be another important step forward
in Georgia’s continuing transformation to a democratic country which
is truly free and fair.
G.T.: The Armenia post election standoff has not earned much attention
from the West. Does it mean that Armenia is still under Russia’s
influence so nobody intends to get involved there?
R.L.: I was saddened to learn of the difficulties in Armenia
surrounding their recent elections. I am hopeful that Armenia will make
progress in developing a free and fair elections system and choose
to develop stronger relations with Europe and the United States. I
am pleased that the United States remains committed to finding fair
and peaceful resolutions to the Nagorno-Karabakh issue.
G.T.: Georgia is considered a pillar for the USA. However, so far
American investments are not flowing into our country. What processes
would facilitate American investments in Georgia?
R.L: I have urged President Bush and his Administration to negotiate
a free trade agreement with Georgia. I believe this would be an
important step in developing a stronger bilateral investment and
commercial relationship.
G.T.: Although the US is the sole Super Power in the world, it is
struggling to deal with the challenges in Middle East. How will the
US overcome the crisis in Iraq and Afghanistan?
R.L.: (Sen. Lugar referred to his opening statement for the Hearing
on Iraq with General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker Senate Committee
on Foreign Relations made April 8, 2008 to answer this question –
GT). "We engaged numerous experts on the situation in Iraq and
on strategies for moving forward. Our discussions yielded several
premises that might guide our discussion today.
"First, the surge has succeeded in improving the conditions on the
ground in many areas of Iraq and creating ‘breathing space’ for
exploring political accommodation. Economic activity has improved
and a few initial political benchmarks have been achieved.
"The United States took advantage of Sunni disillusionment with
al-Qaeda tactics, the Sadr faction’s desire for a cease fire, and other
factors to construct multiple cease-fire agreements with tribal and
sectarian leaders. Tens of thousands of Iraqi Sunnis who previously had
sheltered al-Qaeda and targeted Americans are currently contributing
to security operations, drawn by their interest in self-preservation
and U.S. payments.
"Second, security improvements derived purely from American military
operations have reached or almost reached a plateau. Military
operations may realize some marginal security gains in some areas,
but these gains are unlikely to be transformational for the country
beyond what has already occurred. Progress moving forward depends
largely on political events in Iraq.
"Third, despite the improvements in security, the central government
has not demonstrated that it can construct a "top-down" political
accommodation for Iraq. The Iraqi government is afflicted by corruption
and shows signs of sectarian bias. It still has not secured the
confidence of most Iraqis or demonstrated much competence in performing
basic government functions, including managing Iraq’s oil wealth,
overseeing reconstruction programs, delivering government assistance
to the provinces, or creating jobs.
"Fourth, though portions of the Iraqi population are tired of the
violence and would embrace some type of permanent cease fire or
political accommodation, sectarian and tribal groups remain heavily
armed and are focused on expanding or solidifying their positions.
"The lack of technical competence within the Iraqi government,
external interference by the Iranians and others, the corruption and
criminality at all levels of Iraqi society, the departure from Iraq of
many of its most talented citizens, the lingering terrorist capability
of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, seemingly intractable disputes over territories
and oil assets, and power struggles between and within sectarian and
tribal groups all impede a sustainable national reconciliation.
"Iraq will be an unstable country for the foreseeable future, and
if some type of political settlement can be reached, it will be
inherently fragile.
"Fifth, operations in Iraq have severely strained the U.S. military,
and these strains will impose limits on the size and length of future
deployments to Iraq, irrespective of political decisions or the outcome
of the election in our country. "Last week, before the Senate Armed
Services Committee, General Richard Cody, the Vice Chief of Staff of
the Army, testified: ‘Today, our Army is out of balance. The current
demand for forces in Iraq and Afghanistan exceeds our sustainable
supply of soldiers, of units and equipment, and limits our ability
to provide ready forces for other contingencies.
Our readiness, quite frankly, is being consumed as fast as we can build
it. Lengthy and repeated deployments with insufficient recovery time
at home station have placed incredible stress on our soldiers and on
their families, testing the resolve of the all-volunteer force like
never before.’
"Later in the hearing, General Cody said, ‘I’ve never seen our lack of
strategic depth be at where it is today.’ The limitations imposed by
these stresses were echoed in our own hearings. General Barry McCaffrey
asserted that troop levels in Iraq have to be reduced, stating that
the Army is experiencing ‘significant recruiting and retention problems
and that 10 percent of recruits should not be in uniform.’
Major General Robert Scales testified: ‘In a strange twist of irony
for the first time since the summer of 1863 the number of ground
soldiers available is determining American policy rather than policy
determining how many troops we need….The only point of contention
is how precipitous will be the withdrawal and whether the schedule
of withdrawal should be a matter of administration policy.’
"If one accepts the validity of all or most of these five premises,
the terms of our inquiry today are much different than they were last
September. At that time, the President was appealing to Congress to
allow the surge to continue to create breathing space for a political
accommodation. "Today the questions are whether and how improvements
in security can be converted into political gains that can stabilize
Iraq despite the impending drawdown of U.S. troops.
"Simply appealing for more time to make progress is insufficient. The
debate over how much progress we have made and whether we can make more
is less illuminating than determining whether the Administration has
a definable political strategy that recognizes the time limitations
we face and seeks a realistic outcome designed to protect American
vital interests. Our witnesses last week offered a wide variety of
political strategies for how we might achieve an outcome that would
preserve regional stability, prevent the worst scenarios for bloodshed,
and protect basic U.S. national security interests.
These included focusing more attention on building the Iraqi army,
embracing the concept of federalism, expanding the current bottom-up
cease fire matrix into a broader national accommodation, negotiating
with the Iraqis in the context of an announced U.S. withdrawal,
and creating a regional framework to bolster Iraqi security.
But none of our witnesses last week claimed that the task in Iraq
was simple or that the outcome would likely fulfill the ideal
of a pluralist democratic nation closely aligned with the United
States. All suggested that spoiling activities and the fissures in
Iraqi society could undermine even the most well-designed efforts by
the United States.
Unless the United States is able to convert progress made thus
far into a sustainable political accommodation that supports our
long-term national security objectives in Iraq, this progress will
have limited meaning. We cannot assume that sustaining some level of
progress is enough to achieve success, especially when we know that
current American troop levels in Iraq have to be reduced and spoiling
forces will be at work in Iraq.
We need a strategy that anticipates a political end game and
employs every plausible means to achieve it." A: What is your
forecast regarding Iran’s nuclear program? How will the US respond
to Iran’s threat? The task for American diplomats must be to sustain
international will and solidify an international consensus in favor of
a plan that presents the Iranian regime with a stark choice between
the benefits of accepting a verifiable cessation of their nuclear
program and the detriments of proceeding along their current course.
The United States has in place extensive unilateral economic sanctions
against Iran. Some have suggested that the Congress should pass
legislation targeting additional unilateral sanctions against foreign
companies that invest in Iran. I understand the impulse to take this
step. But given the evident priority that the Iranians assign to their
nuclear program, I see little chance that such unilateral sanctions
would have any effect on Iranian calculations.
Such sanctions would, however, be a challenge to the very nations that
we are trying to coalesce behind a more potent multilateral approach
to Iran. We should not take steps that undermine our prospects for
garnering international support for multilateral sanctions, which offer
better prospects for achieving our objectives than unilateral measures.
Iran poses challenges to U.S. interests in the region beyond its
nuclear program. Iranian policies in Iraq, Lebanon, and in the
Israeli-Palestinian arena threaten our interest in a stable Middle
East. Iran’s expansionist foreign policy and the bombastic rhetoric of
its president have also fed concerns among its neighbors that it seeks
to dominate the region and interfere in their internal affairs. As
with the nuclear issue, an effective U.S. strategy for Iran should
leverage the concerns of other governments in pursuit of a united
front toward objectionable Iranian policies.
While enlisting the support of regional governments is critical,
we should avoid any calls to exploit Shi’ite-Sunni tensions. The
spread of sectarian conflict from Iraq to other parts of the Middle
East is decidedly not in the interest of the United States or the
people of the region. As the United States pursues sanctions at the
United Nations, it is important that we continue to explore potential
diplomatic openings with Iran — either through our own efforts or
those of our allies.
Even if such efforts ultimately are not fruitful, they may reduce
risks of miscalculation, improve our ability to interpret what is
going on in Iran, and strengthen our efforts to enlist the support
of key nations. Secretary Rice’s personal effort in pursuit of peace
between Israel and the Palestinians also is a welcome development
that could help diminish the appeal of extremists in the region,
backed by Iran, who call for confrontation with Israel. History has
demonstrated that progress on this difficult issue rarely is achieved
without sustained and active U.S. diplomacy.
Turkish Daily News
April 19 2008
Bickering overt Article 301 in parliamentary panel
Saturday, April 19, 2008
ANKARA – TDN Parliament Bureau
The Justice Commission in Parliament was the scene of heated
discussions Friday between the government and the opposition over
proposed amendments to articles 301 and 305 of the penal code, which
the European Union says restrict free speech.
Deputies from the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the Nationalist
Movement Party (MHP) were up in arms when a police officer attempted
to take the media out of the parliamentary panel. The CHP and the
MHP argue the contentious articles should remain in place.
Opposition deputies asked the police officer to leave and continued
discussing the amendments amid bickering. The ruling Justice and
Development Party (AKP) is planning to pass the amendments during
the General Assembly next week.
The members of the Justice Commission convened in the meeting room of
the Planning and Budgetary Commission Friday. Before discussing the
proposed amendments, bickering over the media broke out. Commission
Chairman Ahmet Ä°yimaya told cameramen and photo correspondents to
leave the room, while announcing that members of print media may stay,
which drew adverse reactions from MHP deputies.
MHP parliamentary group deputy leader Oktay Vural and commission
member Faruk Bal yelled, "You are blocking the media. You cannot make
a decision on your own. Where is freedom of communication?" Bal said,
"We’ll hold negotiations to free insulting the nation. You are doing
this under the excuse of freedom of expression. The nation must be
aware of this excuse. You cannot prevent the press."
The CHP’s Halil Unlutepe supported Bal and sarcastically asked
whether the ruling party wanted them to leave the room as well. Some
MHP deputies interestingly suggested cameras be given to deputies in
order to record what happened during the discussions.
Police taken out of room
While Ä°yimaya was asking the cameramen to leave the commission,
a police officer from the Parliament’s guard unit intervened in the
incident. MHP and CHP deputies asked who he was and told him to go out
of the room. Unlutepe fought with the police officer, who was taken
outside the room. Vural shouted, "There is no need for despotism. Is
there dictatorship here? There is the freedom of communication."
Vural and his colleagues demanded that the identity of the police
officer must be revealed. Some MHP members asked whether he was the
minister’s guard. "Let the (justice) minister explain who committed
outrage against the deputies and the press."
Justice Minister Mehmet Ali Å~^ahin said his guard did not interfere
in such incidents and then called his guard to prove that it had
not been he who interfered in the bickering in the commission. The
debate was concluded after it was agreed that three cameramen and
one photo correspondent would be allowed to follow the negotiations
in the commission, whose images and photos would be distributed to
other services.
Debate rages on
The AKP’s Bozdag also became a matter of discussion. The CHP’s Ali
Rıza Ozturk blamed the AKP lawmaker for trying to influence the
deputies with his gestures during the session. Bozdag accused the
CHP and MHP deputies of shouting at him.
Ozturk answered, "You attempted to beat up a man," referring to some
AKP lawmakers’ move to beat up independent deputy Kamer Genc. "Is it
fair if every party with majority in Parliament applies violence and
wreaks havoc?" Bozdag had to leave the commission upon reactions.
‘Murderer article’
Pro-Kurdish Democratic Society Party (DTP) Å~^ırnak deputy Hasip
Kaplan opposed Article 301 of the penal code. "This is an article that
led to the murder of (Turkish-Armenian journalist) Hrant Dink. The
origin of such an article dates back to fascist Slovenian law,"
he said.
The MHP’s Oktay Vural interfered and said, "The Turkish nation is
united, not a mosaic." Kaplan disagreed and said, "You cannot tell
me I am not a Kurd. I am proud of being a Kurd. You cannot tell me
to oppose my identity."
Bal said Article 301 was an obstacle for those who want Turkey to
negotiate with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). He argued
that proposing an amendment to Article 301 was not moral.
–Boundary_(ID_gF1DpTr/rmgzNXiHGEudSA)–